Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a recording method.
Description of the Related Art
There is conventionally known a recording apparatus that records images by discharging ink onto a recording medium by driving recording elements, using a recording head having a recording element row where multiple recording elements that generate energy for discharging ink are arrayed. There also is known so-called multi-pass recording in such recording apparatuses, where multiple recording scans are performed as to a unit region to form images.
It is known in such multi-pass recording to generate recording data using image data expressed as multi-bit information that stipulates how many times ink is to be discharged to each pixel, and multiple mask patterns expressed as multi-bit information that stipulates how many times ink is permitted to be discharged to each pixel, corresponding to multiple scans. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-175592 discloses generating recording data using image data and mask patterns, the image data and mask patterns each expressed as 2-bit information.
On the other hand, there is commonly known the so-called time-division driving method for a driving method for driving multiple recording elements within a recording element row, where the multiple recording elements are divided into multiple driving blocks, and the recording elements belonging to different driving blocks are driven at different timings from each other. This time-division driving method enables the number of recording elements being driven at the same time to be reduced, thereby enabling a recording apparatus to be provided with a driving power source of a smaller size.
In a case of recording using the above multi-pass recording, there are cases where a deviation in the discharging position of ink can occur between one type of scan and another type of scan in the multiple scans over a unit region, due to various factors. For example, in a case where floating (cockling) of the recording medium occurs in an arrangement where the recording head is reciprocally scanned in the forward direction and backward direction, the ink discharge direction slightly shifts between the forward direction and backward direction, so there is ink discharge position deviation between a region where recording has been performed by a forward direction scan and a region where recording has been performed by a backward direction scan.
In comparison with this, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-159017 describes an arrangement to suppress ink discharge position deviation among two types of scans such as the forward scan and the backward scan described above. In this arrangement, recording data is generated where ink is discharged in the same pixel region by these two types of scans, and further the above-described time-division driving is performed so that the landing positions of dots formed by each of the driving blocks in each of the two types of scans differ from each other. Now, in order for the landing positions of dots formed by each of the driving blocks to differ in a case of the recording head being reciprocally scanned in the forward direction and backward direction, the driving order of multiple driving blocks when scanning in the backward direction is described as being different from the reverse order for the driving order of multiple driving blocks when scanning in the forward direction. Also, in order for the landing positions of dots formed by each of the driving blocks to differ in a case of the recording head being scanned only in one direction, the driving order of multiple driving blocks in a certain type of scan is described as being different from the driving order of multiple driving blocks in another certain type of scan. According to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-159017, recording can be realized where ink discharge position deviation between two types of scans is suppressed when performing recording using multi-pass recording and time-division driving.
However, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-159017 only describes a case of discharging a certain one type of ink. Accordingly, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-159017 makes no mention whatsoever of how to generate recording data for discharging respective inks in a case of discharging multiple types of ink. Although Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2013-159017 enables discharge position deviation to be controlled between two types of scans in a case of discharging one type of ink, there may be adverse effects on image quality in a case of discharging multiple types of ink. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-175592 does not describe the relationship between recording data for discharging cyan ink and recording data for discharging magenta ink, so discharge position deviation occurring between cyan ink and magenta ink may be uncontrollable. As another example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-175592 does not describe the relationship between recording data for discharging ink of large dot size and recording data for discharging ink of small dot size, so discharge position deviation occurring between ink of large dot size and ink of small dot size may be uncontrollable.